Fisheries and Habitat Conservation strives to fulfill Federal trust responsibilities to Native Americans through several of its programs, including Fish and Wildlife Management Assistance, the National Fish Hatchery System, Alaska Subsistence Management, and the Sikes Act. There are 572 Federally-recognized tribes in the United States, including 224 village groups in Alaska. “Federally recognized” means these tribes and governments have a special, legal relationship with the U.S. government. The US Fish and Wildlife service takes these commitments and responsibilities to work with Native Americans very seriously. The Native American Policy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, dated June 1994, articulates general principles that guide the Service’s government-to-government relationship with Native American governments in the conservation of these resources.
Native American peoples have an ancient respect of the land and its resources, which provides an invaluable perspective to joint aquatic resource conservation and management efforts. Restoration and recovery efforts for many species cannot be accomplished without active Tribal partnership, as some of the most important fish and wildlife habitats in the Nation (more than 55 million acres) are managed or influenced by Tribes. Visit the links below to learn more.

The Fish and Wildlife Management Assistance program assistance to Native Americans

The Alaska Subsistence Management Program

To find out more about working with Native American Tribes at the National level, and locate Regional Native American Liaisons, visit the Fish and Wildlife Service's Native American Liaison page.

For more information on Fish and Wildlife Service grants available to Federally-recognized Native American Tribes, visit:

Additional resources:
The Native American Fish and Wildlife Society:
The Environmental Protection Agency, American Indian Environmental Office
To locate a local Tribal Government, visit:
To find out about specific Tribes